Aspects of the present disclosure relate generally to a fiber optic cable configured for use in very-short-distance networks, and particularly configured to facilitate manual handling of the cable and associated hardware due to the size, structure, and bend characteristics of the cable.
Consumer cables commonly have a round profile without a preferential bend, attributes that are beneficial for making the cables easy to handle, but that also create problems with tangling and spontaneous knot formation of cables. Such problems may particularly effect small, round-bodied flexible cords, wires, ropes, or cables, because such linear objects, without a preferential bend, generally lack resistance opposing motion once moving radially or perpendicularly to their body-length. So such cables, when jostled, may undergo random movements that result in spontaneous knot formation.
Other fiber optic cables are manufactured to have a strong bend preference, on the order of 10-to-1 or more, so as to prevent the cable from bending in a direction that may increase fiber attenuation. However, such cables are usually not intended for consumer handling, but instead may be buried underground or aerially supported by telephone poles. These latter cables are generally too stiff to be manually maneuvered in very-short-distance network applications, such as temporarily connecting a laptop computer and a smart phone for downloads or uploads.
Small consumer cables, on the order of three millimeters in diameter, may use strength elements to induce a bend preference. However, the strength elements also pose a danger for attenuating the optical fibers supported by the cables, because bending of the cables off of the preferential bend axis may cause the strength members to move to the neutral axis, pinching or pressuring the optical fibers. Accordingly, a need exists for a consumer cable configured to facilitate manual handling of the cable and associated hardware by having a structure that allows for ease in maneuvering while mitigating the occurrence of tangling and knot formation and protecting the optical fibers from attenuation and damage due to pinching or crushing.
Furthermore, the particularly small size and unconstrained cable movement of some such consumer cables further complicates the process of accessing optical fibers in such cables for attaching connectors or tethers during manufacturing. For example, it may be difficult to cut a lengthwise slit in a knotted cable of particularly small diameter in order to access optical fibers inside. As such, attaching connectors or furcating ends of small consumer cables may be difficult as well as time consuming. Accordingly, a need exists to mitigate some or all of the above-described problems.